Three of five SA Air Force (SAAF) helicopter squadrons were in action this week assisting people overcome the ravages of Mother Nature and, reportedly in certain instances, arsonists, prompting President Cyril Ramaphosa to praise the rotary wing rescues.
The squadrons – 17 at Air Force Mobile Deployment Wing in Gauteng’s Centurion, 19 at Air Force Base (AFB) Hoedspruit in Limpopo and 22 at AFB Ysterplaat in Cape Town – were tasked in response to requests to the SAAF Command Post at its Pretoria headquarters.
As far as can be ascertained four rotary wing aircraft were authorised for sorties to fight fires in the Western Cape province and rescue people stranded in the wake of torrential rain across the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces.
22 Squadron pilot Major Kobus de Beer reported an Oryx medium transport helicopter provided critical aerial firefighting support to ground crews in the Hermanus and Stanford areas over the weekend of 10 and 11 January.
“Working as a seamless team, PIC (pilot in command) Major Warren ‘Chico’ Jobe; co-pilot Major Harvey ‘Buksie’ Strauss and flight engineer Sergeant Hanroh ‘Wouter’ Nortjé conducted more than 100 drops using the Bambi bucket under challenging conditions, helping to slow the spread of the fires and support ground firefighting efforts.
“Equally important to the success of the operation was the hard work behind the scenes. Ground crew from 22 Squadron and AFB Overberg ensured the Oryx was serviceable, refuelled and ready to fly at short notice, enabling sustained operations when they were needed most,” De Beer wrote.
Around 1 200 nautical miles to the north in Limpopo, another SAAF Oryx and an Agusta A109 light utility helicopter (LUH) flew numerous sorties bringing residents stranded by floods to safety. An unknown number of sorties were flown over a 25-hour period ending at 02h00 on 15 January, hoisting people from rooftops and trees.
An SA National Defence Force (SANDF) Directorate Corporate Communication (DCC) statement has it one aircrew was tasked to rescue a family from Mbaula village, outside Giyani. The community informed the crew and they rescued other people from rooftops and high-lying areas with at least one family member rescued from a tree in the flooded Olifants River. SAAF personnel, according to the DCC statement, brought a local chief to safety after he evaded floodwaters by climbing onto a house roof.
“Aircrews are still assisting others trapped on trees and those requiring medical attention are being taken to Maphutha hospital, near Phalaborwa,” the 15 January statement said.
“The deployed Oryx brought Border Management Authority (BMA) and SA Police Service (SAPS) personnel to safety after they were trapped by rising waters at the Pafuri port of entry (PoE). The A109 was tasked to hoist 18 people from the flooded Khambaku Lodge outside Phalaborwa in another sortie,” the SANDF added.
Summing up the 22 Squadron mission, which is also applicable to the humanitarian ops executed by 17 and 19 squadrons in Limpopo, De Beer wrote the deployment(s) “again highlighted the professionalism, skill and commitment of the SAAF in serving the people of South Africa”.
“Sincere thanks go to everyone involved, aircrew and ground crew alike, for their dedication and teamwork in making the operation a success.”
Ramaphosa this week visited Limpopo after heavy rainfall and flooding left at least 19 people dead and caused destruction to homes, businesses and infrastructure. More than 400 mm of rain that fell in the Vhembe and Mopani Districts.
Ramaphosa noted that government officials have been on the ground “doing everything they can to assist the people who have been affected by the floods. Provincial government…has come out in a very strong way. So much as disaster befalls us with climate change, with rains that are now devastating, we’ve been able to find a response. Of course, we need to do a little bit more.
“And of course, our South African Airforce…came out with their helicopters and rescued a number of people from rooftops and from trees. That shows that our response to disaster is getting better both at the institutional level like the Airforce, the South African Defence Force and also at local government level,” he added.
